What to Look for in Gift Card Software

For a long time, gift cards have been viewed as an afterthought for many businesses. They're a nice option for refunds and often end up making you some money when loyal customers need the perfect gift. However, the technical landscape has developed and the gift card market today is far more sophisticated than before - which means more opportunities.


Choosing a gift card management system or software can be a real challenge. Every business looking to set up its system using third-party gift card software will have questions. The main points to look at include, but aren't limited to, technical aspects, usability aspects, the look and feel, and beyond.


To help you choose the best gift card management software for your business, we’ve summarized the most important things to look for in your software.

Why Should You Invest in Gift Card Software?

Having robust and reliable software on your side should be the number one priority. It allows you to use gift cards as a tool for your business rather than just an option for customers. This means choosing software is rich in flexibility, capabilities, user-friendliness, and integration possibilities. So, what exactly does that mean for your business?

Important Features of Gift Card Software

Choosing to sell gift cards isn't a decision that a business should take lately. To do so successfully, it involves offering physical and digital gift cards, point of sale, and e-commerce functionalities - the list goes on.

Gift Card Templates

Choosing software that provides gift card templates makes your life a lot easier. You can quickly and easily generate gift cards in bulk, or even choose a template and edit certain branding aspects to speed up your processes. This is great if you're looking for a simple solution, but a better option would be to have custom gift cards ordered or generated through your provider.

Bulk Generation

With gift card software, the most important thing is efficiency. Gift card software that facilitates bulk generation of digital gift cards is essential. Having to generate cards on demand is far too slow, and bulk generation also enables you to insert gift cards within email marketing campaigns or promotions. Generating unique codes means that you can track your respective gift cards once they've been registered in your system.

Multichannel Gift Cards

In 2022, customers expect flexibility and omnichannel experiences. This means online and offline activation and redemption without any speed bumps. When choosing your gift card software, ensure that you can both send and redeem via all your main online and offline channels.

Aside from being able to use gift cards on your website, customers should be able to purchase gift cards on your website. An API or existing integration should allow you to build gift card purchasing and redemption into the basic functionalities of your website. Another great option is to introduce a widget on your homepage to boost voucher sales.

API Integrations

You should view your gift cards as a business tool, not a burden. Ensuring that your software has an API or is easily integrated with your systems - POS systems, eCommerce, and more - is paramount. Not only does this allow for efficient data transfers and tracking, but it ensures the seamless user experience your customers deserve.

Customization

This goes two ways - customizing the gift cards for your business needs, and personalizing for your customers. Ensuring that you can customize your gift cards to your business means that your branding can take center stage. However, beyond this, the best software should give you the opportunity to implement certain rules or filters, meaning you’re in complete control at all times. Decide if you want to exclude certain products and services, place time limits & more.

Personalization

Personalization in the context of gift cards means two things. First of all, specific terms such as redemption limits for your respective gift cards. In another sense, personalization should be facilitated.

This means that the software should allow you to create a customer profile once the gift card has been activated. How? The card is then linked to a digital profile or email - which also allows you to deliver a personalized message.

Tracking & Targeting

Particularly when it comes to selling vouchers or gift cards online, tracking should be the first thing that enters your head. Choosing software that allows you to automatically give each gift card or voucher a unique identifier that's tracked means that you get insights into spending patterns, preferences & more. Turn this personal data into actionable insights and target customers effectively in your future campaigns. On a wider basis, this is crucial for tracking the success of your gift card program.

Flexibility and Scalability

Things change quickly in businesses, so your gift card systems should be no different. Choosing software that's flexible and allows you to easily adapt things like branding, rules, and acceptance at POS or payment gateways is critical. Whether you choose to sell gift cards online or simply in the store, maintaining quick and flexible control of how the system works will save a lot of hassle and worry.